Fadli Arabi’s research while affiliated with Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia and other places

The exponential growth of the population and development comes in hand with excessive use of natural resources which leads to the depletion of the non-renewable material. The main goal of this Solar Decathlon Solar Home competition is to select the best home, which can be assembled within 10 days in the desert climate. The solution of four issues with capacities and technologies are strategized to implement the benefit of the inhabitants of the Middle East region such as sobriety, innovation and mobility. The main objectives of this study are to describe the design philosophy, highlight the exclusive experimental analysis on thermal and sensor which embed the energy efficient and sustainability. The added value of Islamic perspective of 'Mizan' and 'Sakinah' which mean balanced home and tranquillity are emphasizing the application of balance need for human and nature. The results showed the conductivity of plant waste material known as oil palm trunk is a medium of a heat transport and thermal insulator during high temperature while the innovative sobriety solution is achieved through wind and sandstorm sensor. A conclusion was drawn that the engineering of green product is performed the optimum human comfort in the dwelling of desert area, while from a social aspect, the principle of privacy protection is essential through the planning of a space in the solar home.

Abstract. Illuminance in spaces is important criteria in rating building performance. These also a strategy to develop some passive design criteria to meet the occupant visual comfort. The aim of this study is to investigate the fluctuation of the illuminance level and the impact of daylighting in an optimum performance zone. This study also investigates the effects of occupant density whether affect the illuminance level in two selected office buildings. Qualitative survey has been conducted on the occupant’s perception toward visual comfort and obtaining the comparison on the glare effect by using IESVE computer simulation while visual test has been conducted involving selected workers. The maximum occupant density and physical conditions; window to wall ratio of 25%, 40% and 70% of typical office space were identified by using IESVE simulation. Findings from experiment of visual performance and daylighting simulation showed more than 50% occupancy in typical office room with 70% of WWR affected the extend of the daylight zone and the acceptable of illuminance level is not achieved. There high contract between 50% of the occupancy in a room is also changed the illuminance level of more than 26%. The findings contribute towards the improvement of an acceptable visual comfort ranges and design recommendations for optimum performance zone in a single office space in Malaysia. 1

Natural daylight is a renewable energy source that is important in photobiology study which looks into the effect of light to living organism. Students' visual comfort satisfaction due to efficient daylight in a classroom are highlighted in the physical of the building and learning space such as windows and openings. One of the factor that influences the design of classrooms environmental condition. Environmental condition consideration includes the daylighting requirement for classrooms. Various standards and guidelines on daylighting consideration have been developed in Malaysia including the recommendation on Window-to-Floor Ratio (WFR) and illuminance level. However, the recommended WFR may not achieve the recommended illuminance level. This paper evaluates whether the recommended WFR design achieve the recommended acceptable illuminance level. Two classrooms in Kolej Permata Insan, Nilai, Negeri Sembilan with different orientation were selected for the study. Integrated Environmental Solution (IESVE) simulation software is used for daylight evaluation. The WFR of the two selected classrooms were set to the recommended 20%. Simulation results shows that the illuminance level for both classrooms are higher than recommended. The simulation also shows that the daylight distribution in the classrooms are not uniform, thus creating inefficient daylight condition. Therefore, the WFR recommends further studies with additional of daylighting design strategy considerations.

Streets are the most ubiquitous public spaces, serving a multitude of functions which tied to an extremely narrow range of historical, geographical and cultural settings. Streets record and determine the history of city form, more than any other element of the urban infrastructure. It has attributors in making it a successful street with its own unique identity. However, in the present situation these attributes are almost eroded by the uncontrolled development and modernity. Streets in Malaysia's royal town are no exception from this issue. This paper attempts to review the attributes of the physical components in contributing to street character of Kuala Kangsar, the royal town of Perak, Malaysia. The study covers a thorough literature review of physical components and its elements to determine the most important components captured. From this in-depth review, the study managed to identify three prominent physical components which strongly influenced the physical character of street in royal town. The study reveals that building, landscape and street pattern are the most extrusive components among others. These physical components will create physical qualities such as attractiveness, visibility, permeability, legibility, human scale and safety in creating street characters that symbolize the historical and cultural context. Therefore, establishing these attributes help to preserve the unique and invaluable historical heritage that has become the identity of the place.

Illuminance in spaces is important criteria in rating building performance. These also a strategy to develop some passive design criteria to meet the occupant visual comfort. The aim of this study is to investigate the fluctuation of the illuminance level and the impact of daylighting in an optimum performance zone. This study also investigates the effects of occupant density whether affect the illuminance level in two selected office buildings. Qualitative survey has been conducted on the occupant's perception toward visual comfort and obtaining the comparison on the glare effect by using IESVE computer simulation while visual test has been conducted involving selected workers. The maximum occupant density and physical conditions; window to wall ratio of 25%, 40% and 70% of typical office space were identified by using IESVE simulation. Findings from experiment of visual performance and daylighting simulation showed more than 50% occupancy in typical office room with 70% of WWR affected the extend of the daylight zone and the acceptable of illuminance level is not achieved. There high contract between 50% of the occupancy in a room is also changed the illuminance level of more than 26%. The findings contribute towards the improvement of an acceptable visual comfort ranges and design recommendations for optimum performance zone in a single office space in Malaysia.

The Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia (USIM) has outline steps to achieve sustainable development and environmentally friendly starting year 2014 which stipulated that all faculties and offices building to be incorporated with sustainable design features and occupants awareness toward energy efficiency building. However, the questions on the existing building design still ponders and requires a research on whether the implementation of the design has met the criteria to achieve energy efficiency building and does the adoption of passive design strategies, such as building orientation, windows size and control window system has taken all the consideration on the penetration of daylight into the building without compromising to the occupant visual comfort. A Qualitative survey with 60 respondents from five different departments has been conducted on the occupant’s perception toward visual comfort due to daylight quantity penetrated from window compare to the data analysis done from IES-Ve on daylighting quantity and quality of the selected departments. Finding from the survey shown that 61.2% of the respondents agreed that there is a visual discomfort from the windows of the office and 52.2% respondent agreed that tinted window reduce the penetration of daylight. Solutions from the literature review on integration of passive and active design strategies are proposed in the retrofitting of the building to harvest the natural lighting and increase the daylight quantity in the building. The research will be useful as basic recommendation on the retrofitting process to harvest the natural lighting and increase the energy efficiency in retrofitting the faculty and office building in USIM.

Strong family ties built on the teachings of Quran and Sunnah produce excellent foundation in forming a household which are constantly under the protection and blessing of Allah and in turn contribute to the overall health of a community. A dwelling filled with the remembrance of Allah will no doubt find an aura of peace and tranquility. This is call a home, a place for a family to worship Allah, to relax body and mind, enjoy legitimate worldly delights, teach, learn and propagate the message of Islam. Therefore, provision and design of a dwelling should be considered important to make it a blessed home. This includes the provision of spaces for religious activities, daily basic chores of households, social production, reproduction hygiene needs, privacy and security. Cultural, religious and sustainable aspects of inhabitants should be considered in the planning and design process of a dwelling in the Malaysia context. The Syariah sources had provided basis for its design to conform to Islamic criteria thereby facilitating various Ibadah activities for the inhabitants and users. A review of theory and philosophy of dwelling from Islamic perspective is analysed to justify the comprehensive living approach promote by Islam. This paper aims to collect data extensively through literature study related to Islamic dwelling and finally basic principles of dwelling design for developing criteria of the adaptability of a home base on Islamic teachings that physically manifests the varied needs of the Islamic system and religious prescriptions will be develop. Dwelling model that incorporates Islamic concept and values derived from these principles will ultimately elevate the spiritual status and strengthen the Ibadah activities of the inhabitants and accomodate Islam’s diversity with a flexible design.

Strong family ties built on the teachings of the Quran and Sunnah produce excellent foundation in forming a household which are constantly under the protection and blessing of Allah and in turn contribute to the overall health of a community. A dwelling filled with the remembrance of Allah will no doubt find an aura of peace and tranquillity. This is called a home, a place for a family to worship Allah, to relax body and mind, enjoy legitimate worldly delights, teach, learn and propagate the message of Islam. Therefore, provision and design of a dwelling should be considered important to make it a blessed home. This includes the provision of spaces for religious activities, daily basic chores of households, social production, reproduction hygiene needs, privacy and security. Cultural, religious and sustainable aspects of inhabitants should be considered in theplanning and design process of a dwelling in the Malaysian context. The Syariah sources have provided basis for its design to conform to Islamic criteria, thereby facilitating various ibadah activities for the inhabitants and users. A review of theory and philosophy of dwelling from Islamic perspective is analysed to justify the comprehensive living approach as promoted by Islam. This paper aims to review literature pertaining to housing principles in Islam and to present basic principles for developing housing criteria based on Islamic teachings.